On a green trail

This monsoon, ditch the beach and seek out the sanctuaries in Goa. You're sure to stumble upon some surprises.

When you think of
Goa, only beaches
come to mind. But
did you know that the tiny
state has six sanctuaries
spread out over 750 sq km of
protected forests?

Of all these, the Bondla
Sanctuary is the friendliest.
At 8 sq km, its size is not
intimidating. Although it is
an outcrop of the Western
Ghats, the sanctuary stands
isolated. In fact, it's an island
of hillocks surrounded by valleys
on all eight sides.

Since it's a moist, deciduous
forest, the vegetation is
sparse. Hence, it's easier to
spot wild animals lurking in
the bushes. The aesthetically
designed cottages merge
beautifully with the forest,
making it warm and inviting.

Bondla was once a
hunter's paradise. But after
Dayanand Bandodkar, a
hunter-turned-conservationist,
took over as the first
Chief Minister of Goa in
1969, he actively encouraged
eco-tourism. The philosophy
behind eco-tourism as it is
practised here is interesting:
Increase tourism to reduce
poaching. The constant
presence of tourists and
vehicles is likely to deter
poachers who operate in
isolated forests.

Bondla is a birdwatcher's
paradise. We saw six flamebacked
woodpeckers that
came to roost in the hollow
trunk of a bottle palm; the
ruby-throated yellow bulbul
that is the state bird of Goa;
and a dozen hornbills that
flew overhead and shook the
treetops with the flapping of
their gigantic wings.

Later, we met Paresh
Porob, the Range Officer of
Bondla, who has earned himself
the sobriquet of 'Ranger
in Danger', for his courageous
stand against the jungle
mafia. He took us to his
home and introduced us to a
baby owlet that he had
recently rescued. It gave us
all a welcome peck, mistaking
our fingers for food.
Paresh told us that he gets up
every three hours at night to
feed the baby, since owls
sleep through the day and
stay awake at night!

The next day, we trekked
to the watchtower for a bird's
eye view of the entire sanctuary.
On the way, we came
across a beautiful nest made
of moss from which a bird
flew away, and sat on a faraway
branch. We learned
that it was the red-throated
flycatcher. This was only the
third time that it had been
sighted in Goa.

Later that day, we came
across a large herd of spotted
deer. Paresh pointed out
that this increase in numbers
was a cause of concern.
An increase in the number
of spotted deer meant the
number of predators was
decreasing. Also, since the
spotted deer polish off the
entire forest floor, there's little
left for the smaller
species, such as the barking
deer and the mouse deer.
Hence, they are dwindling.

En route to our next destination,
we discovered vast,
'unprotected' forests where
mining was going on in full
swing. The soft, red soil from
these open mines had covered
the treetops of many
forests like a shroud. I wondered
- despite safe havens
like Bondla, was Goa digging
its own grave?